Bonifacio Pena Missing Person Case

May 04, 2019

Sep 18, 2019

Bonifacio

Pena

25

17

71 inches

180 lbs

Hispanic / Latino

Male

In the spring of 2018, a 17-year-old named Bonifacio Miguel Pena, also known as "Facio," vanished from Portage, Michigan. On May 19, 2018, the day he was last seen, Bonifacio, who was experiencing homelessness at the time, was staying at a friend's apartment in the 1700 block of Valleywood Court. He was last observed wearing a blue acid-washed denim jacket with a hood and ripped sleeves, black stretch pants, and red sneakers, and he was carrying a black Nike drawstring bag. The initial report of his disappearance was filed on May 23, 2018, by a family member with the Van Buren County Sheriff's Office, after it became uncharacteristic for him to be out of contact with family and friends. The investigation soon indicated that he was last seen in the company of a man named Nicholas Johnson. The circumstances leading up to Bonifacio's disappearance grew increasingly concerning as details emerged. The night before he went missing, Johnson had reportedly become upset after walking in on Bonifacio and a woman they were staying with engaged in sexual activity. The following day, Johnson allegedly concocted a story about a house with a large amount of money and guns that he and another girl had burglarized. He proposed to Bonifacio that they retrieve the stolen items, insisting they had to travel through the woods "Army style" and that the woman could not accompany them. Witnesses at the apartment saw Bonifacio and Johnson leave together on foot, and shortly after, they heard what sounded like gunshots coming from the direction they had gone. Johnson returned to the apartment alone several hours later, covered in mud and acting anxious. He claimed that Bonifacio had left with some unidentified friends in a car. That same night, Johnson burned his boots and sweatshirt in a fire outside the apartment and demanded that his other clothes be washed immediately. In the days that followed, Johnson's behavior became more erratic. He was seen repeatedly entering the woods and swampy areas near the apartment for hours at a time, returning filthy on each occasion. When questioned about Bonifacio's whereabouts, he was evasive and threatening. Eight days after Bonifacio was last seen, police were called to the apartment building because Johnson was reportedly pounding on a door, yelling, "The same thing that happened to Bonifacio is going to happen to you." Despite searches of the area, no trace of Bonifacio was found. The case remained cold for years, though foul play was suspected, with authorities believing Johnson was involved in the teen's disappearance. A significant break in the case came in February 2021, when Johnson was arrested and later convicted for the murder of his parents, whose bodies were discovered in a state game area. This development led investigators to re-examine Bonifacio's case, and by November 2024, after exhausting all leads, the Portage Department of Public Safety declared him deceased. Subsequently, Johnson was charged with open murder, felony firearm, possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, and carrying a concealed weapon in connection with Bonifacio's death. Prosecutors believe the motive for the alleged murder was jealousy. Bonifacio Pena's body has never been recovered.

May 19, 2018

Portage

Michigan

Kalamazoo County

Unknown

50329

Van Buren County Sheriff's Office

Paw Paw

Michigan

Van Buren County

49079

205 Kalamazoo St., Michigan

2696572006

County

Law Enforcement

3283-18

Van Buren County Sheriff's Office

9387

Black

Brown

Brown

07/07/2026